After the Happy End
by Midoriri
Summary: -Set after 'Smile Finale -Remix-' Joker's having a tiny bit of trouble adjusting to his new chance at life... A simple one-shot.


Oh, don't get him wrong; it actually felt wonderful to have his mind cleansed of all the hatred, bitterness, and despair that had infected his being for ages. It was wonderful to be able to feel more emotions, to be able to actually want things, to have aspirations instead of just a desire to just crush them. To be properly free, purified, or whatever it was that everyone called it.

But sometimes he really wished he had his previous body.

His previous body didn't make squeaking noises every time he took a step. His previous body didn't have tiny little arms. And his previous body had been _big._

Joker (he still wasn't used to thinking himself as 'Jokaa' yet) was thinking on that last part as he stood before a bookcase, struggling to push a book about the same size as himself onto the second shelf. A new fairy tale had been created, a new antagonist appeared in their world. He'd welcomed the new fairy to Bad End Kingdom, sent him on his way with Majo-rin (the three fairies were happily making themselves a little more helpful by leading new arrivals around the kingdom, getting them used to their role of 'villain'), and then all he had to do was put the new book on the shelf with the others.

Which was easier said than done, of course.

If he was bigger, and had a human hand and opposable thumbs, he couldn't help but think with irritation, this could be done in half a second!

And just then, much to his surprise, the book was plucked out of his hands and slid into place on the shelf. He turned around, craning his head back to see whoever had come to help. "Aoki Reika! What are _you_ doing here?!"

Reika knelt in front of him, smiling as serenely as ever. "Hello, Jokaa. It is nice to see you, too."

The little fairy shook his head, cursing himself internally. "I'm surprised to see you here, Aoki Reika. It's been a long time, ken ken." And besides, what business would she and Pretty Cure have here? They'd much rather visit Candy and Pop, he was sure of that.

What Reika said next half-confirmed that. "The girls and I wanted to see how everyone was faring as of late. We spoke to Candy and Pop for a while, and then wanted to see how you all were. Miyuki and the others are talking to Wolf-runrun and Oni-nin right now. We have not found Majo-rin yet..."

"She's helping the new villain get acquainted, ken ken," Joker cut off. He groaned a bit, slapping a tiny paw to his forehead and squinting his eyes shut. "This job is a lot harder than the one I had before, ken ken! New stories to create, new bad ends to make, villains to welcome in, villains to heal when they're hurt..." Indeed, any villain who suffered a painful ending in the fairy tale would have to come back home to be taken care of. No one tried to hurt them too badly, but sometimes... Just yesterday one of the wicked queen fairies had hurt her head and had to be taken back with a large bump on it; in her fairy tale she was to drop dead out of rage, but when the fairy dropped to the ground to play dead (since of course none of them really died) she smacked her head on one of the roads.

At least this time around, the other players in her tale were more sympathetic, unlike the way it was in the past.

...and speaking of the past.

"I'm not saying I want to go back to all that, ken ken!" Joker hastily added, eyes going wide. And then a wave of guilt washed over him; just a while ago, hadn't he been wishing he had the same body as back then? That was sort of wishing for the past, wasn't it?

No, it wasn't!

But...

"It just...it's going to take me a little while to get used to all of this, ken ken!" he cried in frustration. "I have all these new tasks to do, I have to be the next emperor when I'm strong enough and have learned enough and when it's Pierrot-sama's time, I have to remember every single person here, I'm a lot smaller, I can't do as much as I used to, ken ken. And...And I remember, Aoki Reika, I _remember_!"

Reika was slightly alarmed to see that those cute red eyes were looking a bit shiny. And wet. "Jokaa...?"

"I remember...I remember everything I did, everything I _felt_, ken ken. My mind's cleared, I feel much better, I don't despair anymore but I remember all of it..."

And Reika was alarmed further when the little ball of fluff in front of her gave a sniffle.

"And I never...I never told anyone I was sorry. Pierrot-sama apologized to everyone, so did the Big Bad Three, but I never...Do you suppose they think...do you girls think I still-"He couldn't go on, dissolving into quiet sniffles and weeping. "I...A-and I'm _sorry_, ken ken..."

It was much softer, not hysterical wailing and shrieking like before, but in its own way this crying was a lot worse for Reika to witness. This was genuine sadness, not mad despair that would give way to deranged laughter, this was a genuine broken heart, frustration.

She knew how to fix that.

Joker was forced to stop crying when he felt hands gently wrap around his sides, under his arms, and he was lifted into the air. "Aoki Reika?"

Reika held him at arms' length for a moment, so he could see her gentle, teary smile, and then gently pulled him to her chest for a hug. She felt the little fairy freeze up before relaxing, sniffling into her shoulder. Softly, she petted the back of his head, nuzzling her cheek against him a bit. "It is alright," she whispered, whispered so he'd stop crying and listen. A trick he'd learned from her mother. "It is alright...No one is angry at you. No one thinks you are still bad. You were healed, just as Emperor Pierrot was, yes? You are alright, no one is angry...shhh..."

His sniffs were subsiding now. Reika took this as her chance to go on. "You are frustrated right now, and that is normal. That is fine. Of course you are a little upset; a new body, a new way of thinking, a completely new life...And I suppose you are tired of being so small, are you not?" She smiled more brightly at the sound of Joker's faint laugh. "Do not worry about that either. Soon this will come easier for you, you will never forget how you were back then but that will only make you stronger and encourage you to be better. And Candy and Pop are able to assume human form, so it will not be much longer for you too. Alright?" she gave him a little squeeze at the last word, smiled again when she felt him nod.

"Do you want to know something, Jokaa?"

"What, ken ken?"

"You do not have to worry about us holding a grudge against you. After all...I came specifically to see you."

That made him fall silent, freeze up again. And that made Reika chuckle a little. They sat like that, in complete silence, for a few minutes longer before Joker spoke again.

"Did you mean that, Aoki Reika?"

"Of course! And Jokaa...we are friends now; you can call me Reika-chan if you like."

"...Reika-chan."

"That's it."

"Reika-chan...I think crying makes me tired, ken ken."

Reika's smile looked slightly-exasperated, but still very much affectionate. "That is normal. You may sleep, Jokaa; I will come to visit you again soon, so do not worry about missing out on this one."

"Okay." Jokaa shifted against Reika's shoulder, hid his face in her hair. He wasn't lying; crying really did tire him out just now. He supposed that was only part of the reason, though; having such a hard job to do was taking its toll on his little fairy body too. "Aok – Reika-chan?"

"Mm?"

"...thank you. Tell Hoshizora Miyuki and the others 'thank you' too."

"Of course."

And with that out of the way, and feeling a little better than before but knowing it wouldn't all be resolved so easily, Joker – no, _Jokaa_, slept.


End file.
